"THE AIR MAILS OF NEW ZEALAND,
Volume One, THE INTERNAL FLIGHTS" (1897-1955)
by DOUGLAS A. WALKER
This publication covers an exciting period of New
Zealand's history with clarity and detailed accounts -
creating an invaluable historical document for the
aerophilatelist and historian alike.

"AIRMAILS OF NEW ZEALAND, Volume
Two, THE OVERSEAS FLIGHTS 1928-1940"
by DOUGLAS A. WALKER
This book is an exhaustive encyclopedia of New
Zealand's early overseas flights. Nothing has been left
to the reader's imagination - a must for anyone
interested in early New Zealand, whether it be to learn
about the famous pioneer aviators of the day, the
amazing machines of wood and fabric they flew or stamp
issues and cachet types that were used on overseas mail
at that time.

"AIRMAILS OF NEW ZEALAND, Volume Three,
THE INTERNATIONAL AIRMAILS, 1940-1970"
by ROBIN M. STARTUP
This is the second volume covering International airmails
through to 1970.
Once again, the historical data of this era of jet-powered
flight has been treated with the importance it deserves
in this super publication.

"THE NEW ZEALAND AIRMAIL CATALOGUE" third edition by
JAMES A. STAPLETON - edited by MIKE SHAND
This is the latest catalogue published by the Society and it does not
disappoint. Printed on quality gloss paper and being extremely easy to
read, there are over one hundred and forty airmail covers displayed,
spanning ninety-eight years - from 1911-2009. It contains everything the
aerophilatelist, postal historian, or aviation enthusiast could wish for.

For Sale

The AMSNZ also has on its website a number of special flight covers
and historic aviation postcards.
Historic aviation photos are also displayed and are for sale.

Air Mail Society Club Meetings

The Air Mail Society of New Zealand holds monthly
meetings at its club rooms in Christchurch and postal
auctions with all types of associated material on offer
at various times; eg. flight covers, airmail stamps,
special catchets & cancels, commemorative &
anniversary covers, photos, books and more. There is
also a very interesting and informative 'NZ Air Mail
Newsletter' published monthly and free to
members.
If you would like to know more, contact the Air Mail
Society through their address below or visit their
website.

"THE AIR MAIL SOCIETY OF NEW ZEALAND Inc.,
Box 29-144, Fendalton,
Christchurch,
New Zealand"AMSNZ website

By Lieutenant John Moncrieff and
Captain George Hood flying a Ryan B-1 Brougham G-AUNZ,
"Aotearoa". The monoplane left Mascot Aerodrome, Sydney
at 2.45am on the first attempted aerial crossing of the
Tasman Sea and intermittent morse signals were received
in New Zealand up to 12 hours 8 minutes after take-off.
The aircraft was never seen again and probably was
forced down at sea. It is uncertain if any unofficial
mail was carried.

1928, 10-11 September

AUSTRALIA-NEW ZEALAND FIRST TRANS TASMAN FLIGHT

By the Fokker F.VIIb/3m, G-AUSU
"Southern Cross" commanded by Charles Kingsford Smith
with C.T.R Ulm (co-pilot), HA. Litchfield (navigator)
and T.H. McWilliam (radio). The "Southern Cross" left
Richmond Aerodrome, Sydney at 5.25pm on 10 September,
landing at Wigram Aerodrome, near Christchurch shortly
after 8.00am on the next day.
An estimated 15 covers were flown and vary from those
signed by the entire crew to others signed by only one
or two members. Charles Ulm was sworn in as a
Postmaster and delivered the mail to the Christchurch
C.P.O. where the covers were hand cancelled
'CHRISTCHURCH N.Z 11 SP28. 5.15 PM'

1928, 13-14 October

NEW ZEALAND-AUSTRALIA RETURN FLIGHT

Of the "Southern Cross" commanded
by Charles Kingsford Smith with the same crew. The
Fokker was flown to Blenheim from Christchurch on 28
September and housed in a temporary hangar which had
been erected on Fairhall's Farm. On 13 October at
5.00am the "Southern Cross" left Blenheim and after a
flight of 22 hours 51 minutes landed at Richmond
Aerodrome. Again a variety of an estimated 16 covers
was carried including those posted at Blenheim and
others posted on arrival at Sydney.

Were inaugurated in accordance
with the London Air Mail Conference. These acceptances
were announced by the N.Z. P. and T. Department as the
services became available but the numbers of letters
dispatched on the first acceptances were very small in
most instances.

1 June - via Sydney-Melbourne by A.N.A

4 July - via Adelaide-Perth by A.N.A. and
Karachi-London by Imperial Airways

4 July - via Sydney-Melbourne by A.N.A from Wellington
/ from Auckland)

5 July - via USA by Boeing Air Services from San
Francisco to Chicago & National Air Transport from
Chicago to New York;
- via USA air services & Trans Atlantic shipping to
the United Kingdom & Europe
- via USA and Canadian Airways Ltd. from
Detroit-Toronto-Montreal

29 July - via Canadian Air Services (Western Air
Express) for onward sea mails to the U.K. and
Europe:
- via Canadian and USA air services for Canada
- via Victoria-Seattle and USA air services for
delivery in the USA
- via Victoria-Seattle and US and Canadian Air Services
to Canada

In the Avro Avian IVA, G-ABCF
"Southern Cross Junior" (previously owned by Sir
Charles Kingsford Smith). Menzies flew from Mascot
Aerodrome and landed in a swamp at Hari Hari on the
West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand, making
the first solo Trans-Tasman crossing in 11 hours 45
minutes. Menzies had not applied for Civil Aviation
permission for the flight but had intimated he was
flying to Perth and his actual destination was not
disclosed until he radioed from over the Tasman Sea. A
message was dropped at Okarito before he landed at Hari
Hari but this and any other letters have not been
verified.

1931, 31 January

THE 10TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CANTERBURY (NZ) AVIATION
CO.

First Christchurch-Timaru flight
by Captain Euan Dickson. A special cover was printed
with the co-operation of the Air Mail Society of N.Z.
and approval of the Post Office. Covers were franked
with a 4d stamp and postmarked CHRISTCHURCH 31 JA 31.
As there was no appropriate flight in N.Z. at the time
the covers were flown on the inaugural
Cloncurry-Normanton flight in Australia. (backstamped
Normanton 18FE 31) Covers are signed by Euan
Dickson.

The New Zealand Postal Department
announced on April 10th 1931, that final arrangements
had been completed for the dispatch of New Zealand
mails by two trial services from Australia to England.
Correspondence from New Zealand was to be dispatched by
the regular trans-Tasman mail steamers connecting at
Sydney with the combined services of Australian
National Airways, QANTAS and Imperial Airways. In fact,
this was the return service of the flights recorded
under '4/4/31', but as it transpired, the crash of the
Imperial Airways airliner "City of Cairo" on April 19
at Koepang during its flight to Australia, made
necessary some interesting changes to the
itinerary.

Special air mail fees for each half ounce, payable in
addition to ordinary postage were fixed as follows:-
Strait Settlements 1/-, Burma and India 1/3, Great
Britain and Europe 2/-. Letters were to have the
official air mail label affixed and be suitably
endorsed according to the service required.

The New Zealand acceptance consisted of 450 articles,
229 of those destined for England. The Christchurch
mail closed on April 16 and was forwarded on the
overnight inter island ferry steamer to Wellington
where it met up with the Wellington mail on the 17th,
departing the same day by the SS Ulimaroa for
Sydney.

The Australian Postal Authorities had provided a
special commemorative cachet and the New Zealand mail
was conveyed to the G.P.O., Sydney, where it was
treated in the same way as the Australian mail by
having the cachet applied in violet. No other transit
mark was used at Sydney but it appears that the New
Zealand correspondence was integrated and sorted with
the Australian mail, then bagged for delivery along the
route.

ACCEPTANCES FOR NEW ZEALAND VIA SECOND EXPERIMENTAL
AIR MAIL ENGLAND-AUSTRALIA-[N.Z.] - IMPERIAL AIRWAYS
/ QANTAS / AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL AIRWAYS

The second of the two experimental
air mails from England to Australia (see the entry
4/4/31 "Airmails of New Zealand Volume Two" for first
dispatch) left Croydon Airport, London, on Saturday,
April 25 1931, aboard the Imperial Airways Argosy II
airliner G-AAEJ "City of Coventry", on the first stage
of the established regular service to India, from which
point special arrangements were made for extension of
the service to Australia with provision for the
acceptance and conveyance of mails for New Zealand,
such correspondence to be forwarded by surface from
Sydney to destination.

The inclusive [postage and air fee] charges from the
United Kingdom were the same as for the first
experimental air mail, namely 1/- per half ounce to the
Straits Settlements and Malay States, and 1/4d per half
ounce to Australia and New Zealand. On this occasion
Imperial Airways Ltd did not issue souvenir covers as
they had done for the first experimental flight.

The "City of Coventry" followed the same route across
central Europe as that taken by the first experimental
air mail, but on this occasion the mail was much
smaller, the total number of letters for Straits
Settlements, Australia and New Zealand being only about
5,000 as against 15,000 for the earlier flight.

Again the quantities of letters dispatched to New
Zealand for each point were not recorded. Although
mails are known to have been uplifted from Karachi,
Delhi, Allahabad, Calcutta and Rangoon, those from
Calcutta and Rangoon are the only ones from these five
points known for certain to have included letters for
New Zealand. Others no doubt exist, whilst it is
possible that covers may exist from any one of the many
dispatch points between London and Karachi which would
have connected with the experimental extension to
Australia. The known existing sectors to New Zealand by
the 2nd experimental airmail are:

Via:-
London-Sydney [5,000 for all points on extension]
Calcutta-Sydney [Quantity not recorded]
Rangoon-Sydney [Quantity not recorded]
Singapore-Sydney [Quantity not recorded]

British and Dutch acceptance of
N.Z. mail for the first Amsterdam-Australia airmail.
The KLM Fokker F.VIIb-3m PH-AFS "Specht" (Capt. M.P.
Pattist Capt. J.J. Moil) flew from Amsterdam to Batavia
where KNILM Fokker F.VIIa-3m PK-AFC "Abel Tasman"
carried the mail to Wyndham-Brisbane-Melbourne,
arriving there on May 19. Mail for NZ was off-loaded
for Sydney and forwarded by trans Tasman steamer.
Postage rate of was two shillings and sixpence (2/6)
from the U.K. Special cachets were applied at Amsterdam
to mail posted there and to most of the mail from the
U.K.

In accord with the London Air Mail
Convention. A set of three air mail stamps was issued
by the N.Z. Post Office on 10 November and a number of
the covers carried on these acceptances and the flights
on the 12th were also First Day of issue covers.
(Prices are based on covers with standard franking and
any 1931 Air stamps should add to these
valuations).

NEW ZEALAND ACCEPTANCES FOR FIRST "ALL-AUSTRALIAN"
AIR MAIL [N.Z.]-AUSTRALIA-ENGLAND CHRISTMAS AIR MAIL
- AIR TRAVEL / AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL AIRWAYS LIMITED

By Australian National Airways
Sydney-London flight. When the Australian Post Office
contracted with ANA to fly a mail to arrive in London
before Christmas the N.Z. Post Office also contracted
for a New Zealand mail to be included. A fee of one
shilling (1/-) was charged for a standard letter and a
large rectangular cachet was applied to covers, Mail
was uplifted at Invercargill, Dunedin, Christchurch,
Blenheim by Squadron Leader McGregor on the flight of
12 November and together with Wellington mail, was
forwarded by the SS "Maheno" from Wellington to
Sydney.

The mail picked up at Palmerston North and New Plymouth
by McGregor and the Auckland mail was sent from
Auckland to Sydney by the SS "Ulumaroa". It was loaded
into the Avro Ten, VH-UNA "Southern Sun" and flown by
Captain G.U. Allan to Alor Star, Malaya where he
crashed on landing. Sir Charles Kingsford Smith then
flew VH-UMG "Southern Star" to pick up the mail and
continued to London via Bangkok, Karachi, Calcutta,
Aleppo, Le Touquet to Croydon.

FIRST NEW ZEALAND ACCEPTANCE VIA -
LAUNCESTON-WHITEMARK (FLINDERS ISLAND) AIR MAIL
SERVICE

On 28 June 1932, New Zealand mails
were flown on the service of Captain MacKenzie Johnson
via Launceston-Whitemark-Flinders Island.

1932, 30 June

FIRST REGULAR NEW ZEALAND ACCEPTANCES FOR - PERSIA,
IRAQ, PALESTINE and EGYPT via the Karachi - London
Air Route BY IMPERIAL AIRWAYS LIMITED.

In June 1932, the New Zealand Post
Office Dept. announced that additional air mail
services to overseas countries would be provided.

The New Zealand Post Office Department arranged with
the Indian authorities to sort New Zealand mail and
rebag with their own outgoing mails to countries on the
Karachi-Cairo route operated by Imperial Airways
Ltd.

Both DH-66 Hercules and the much larger Handley Page
H.P 42 airliners were employed over various sectors of
the route depending on the standard of the aerodromes
serving the various cities and intermediate landing
grounds.

Imperial Airways had now separated their London-Karachi
and London-Cape town routes at Athens rather than Cairo
as was previously the case, whilst Gaza had been
replaced by the stop at Tiberias westbound, with a
short car journey to Haifa on the Mediterranean coast.
The new U.P.U. world air mail route maps of April 1932,
reveal that the Rutbah Wells stop after leaving Baghdad
for Tiberias had been deleted and this would indicate
that the 4-engined Handley Page H.P. 42 airliners were
now being used on the non-stop flight from Baghdad to
Tiberias.

Mail for Egypt

Commencing with the Imperial
Airways service which left London for Karachi on April
16 1932, the Short S17 flying-boat G-ABFB "Sylvanus"
operating the Brindisi-Haifa section of the route,
called at Limassol, Cyprus for the first time and after
delivering its passengers and mails to Haifa, continued
south to Alexandria, thus inaugurating a new service
between Cyprus and Alexandria on April 19.

This Kent flying-boat service also connected the
Karachi-London route with the London-Cape Town route of
Imperial Airways by way of the Haifa-Alexandria link
and it was by this service that the New Zealand mail
finally reached Egypt. From Alexandria the mail was
railed to Cairo at which point all mail for Egypt was
backstamped:- "Cairo Par Avion - 30 JL.32.4-5P".

By June 1932, the New Zealand Post
Office Department had completed arrangements with the
Indian Postal Authorities for the acceptance of mails
from New Zealand (in accordance with the regulations
established as a result of the Air Mail Convention of
the Universal Postal Union held in London in 1929) to
be sorted at Karachi and rebagged with the Indian
dispatches for countries south of Egypt on the
London-Cape Town route of Imperial Airways
Limited.

Toward the end of June 1932, the New Zealand
Postmaster-General, the Hon. A. Hamilton, announced
that commencing with dispatches from Auckland on June
30, and from Wellington on July 15, air mail
correspondence would be accepted for the following
countries served by the Egypt-South Africa section of
the Imperial Airways service:- Sudan, Uganda, Kenya,
Tanganyika, Northern and Southern Rhodesia, Nyasaland,
Portuguese East Africa, South Africa and South-West
Africa.

Because of the irregular services by mail steamers
between Australia and Africa it would be difficult to
estimate the saving in time which would result in the
use of the new air mail service for correspondence to
the African countries served, but it was believed that
in most instances a saving of at least two or three
days would be made.

It was stressed that letters for dispatch by the new
service should have one of the special air mail labels
affixed to the top left corner, whilst the Post Office
provided distinctive air mail stamps for such services
and on this occasion would also apply a special
commemorative cachet to all correspondence included in
the inaugural dispatches from both Auckland and
Wellington.

Most existing covers from the Auckland dispatch were
cancelled with the datestamp of the Foreign Mail
Branch, measuring 25mm diameter and worded:- "AUCKLAND
F.M.B. - N.Z. 29.JE32 10-AM". The Auckland cachet was
applied in violet and carried the following
inscription:-

"NEW ZEALAND-AFRICA / First Official Air Mail / (device
of a single-engined biplane in flight) / From Auckland,
30th June, 1932 / By INDIA-EGYPT, EGYPT-SOUTH AFRICA /
AIR SERVICES".

The mail left Auckland on June 30, and was conveyed by
surface transport to Karachi where it was sorted,
rebagged, and dispatched on the same Imperial Airways
aircraft which carried the mails mentioned in the
previous chapter, so that from Karachi to Cairo the
aircraft used and the route traversed, were identical
to those recorded in that chapter.

The Cairo-Cape Town Itinerary

Following is the day-to-day
itinerary of the sections flown and the types of
aircraft used on the overall Cairo-Cape Town service
delivering N.Z. mail.

Port Bell was the alighting area for the Short S.8
Calcutta flying-boat serving Kampala and was the only
stopping place in Uganda. The actual flying-boat used
on this flight would almost certainly have been G-AASJ
"City of Khartoum" which operated the Khartoum-Kisumu
service for a considerable period. Mail for Uganda was
backstamped "KAMPALA UGANDA 4PM 3 AU 32" within a
double-lined circle measuring 30mm in diameter.

At Kisumu the mails were transferred from the Calcutta
flying-boat to the DH-66 Hercules landplane which flew
on to Nairobi, the overnight stop for Kenya and
destination for the mail bag made up for that country.
Covers were backstamped "NAIROBI KENYA 12.30PM 4 AU 32"
within a 30mm circle.

Departing Nairobi on the morning of August 4, the
Hercules airliner flew south over the Kenyan border
into Tanganyika Territory, calling at Moshi before
proceeding to Dodoma, the mail delivered to that point
including correspondence from New Zealand. There was
some delay in handling the mail there but covers were
eventually backstamped "DODOMA 630PM 4 AU 1932", the
postmark consisting of concentric circles measuring
28mm overall. The night stop on the 4th, was made at
Mbeya just inside the southern border of
Tanganyika.

The following morning the DH-66 flew south over the
border into Northern Rhodesia, calling at Mpika before
continuing to Broken Hill where New Zealand
correspondence was included in the mail delivered.
Covers were backstamped "BROKEN HILL NORTHERN RHODESIA
- 5AUG 32 4-0PM" contained within concentric circles
measuring 29mm in diameter. The airliner continued to
Salisbury in Southern Rhodesia for a night stop but New
Zealand covers to Salisbury have not been reported but
they may exist.

1932, 15 July

IMPERIAL AIRWAYS LIMITED FIRST NEW ZEALAND ACCEPTANCE
FROM WELLINGTON VIA KARACHI -- CAIRO -- CAPE TOWN
SERVICES TO AFRICA: CONNECTING WITH INAUGURAL NAIROBI
-- ZANZIBAR AIR MAIL SERVICE TO COASTAL EAST AFRICA
BY WILSON AIRWAYS

Reference to the chapter recorded
under June 30,1932, (Airmails of New Zealand, Vol. 2,
African Services), will reveal that the New Zealand
Post Office, in announcing the inauguration of
acceptance of air mail correspondence for conveyance
over the combined air routes via Karachi- Cairo and
Cairo-Cape Town, indicated that the Department would
provide special commemorative cachets for both the
first Auckland dispatch and the first Wellington
dispatch.

Covers from the Wellington dispatch are much scarcer
than those from the Auckland acceptance as will be seen
by comparing the respective checklists, whilst it has
been reported that the Wellington dispatch did not
include correspondence for Egypt, Sudan, Tanganyika,
Mozambique or South-West Africa.

By Imperial Airways reopened route
from the Persian side of the Gulf to the Arabian side
on the Karachi-London service. Although the N.Z. Post
Office announced acceptances for this service and
provided special cachets, only very small mails were
received.

Second Trans Tasman flight by Sir
Charles Kingsford Smith in the Fokker F.VIIb/3m. VH-USU
"Southern Cross" with Captain P.G. Taylor (co-pilot and
navigator), John Stannage (radio), and passengers S.E.
Neilsen, and Jack Percival. The Fokker took off from
Gerringong Beach and landed at Bell Block aerodrome
carrying approximately 20 to 23 unofficial covers. Most
covers are signed by one or more members of the
crew.

The return flight of the Fokker
F.V1lW3m VH-USU, "Southern Cross" piloted by Sir
Charles Kingsford Smith with Captain P.G. Taylor
(co-pilot and navigator), John Stannage (radio) and
J.T. Pethybridge (engineer) with H.M. Mackay a
passenger. An unofficial mail of approximately 50
covers was carried including about 30 prepared by the
crew at the Waipapakauri Hotel while preparing for the
flight. A batch of 16 covers was also printed by
Colonel Allen Bell and posted at Rawene while 4 covers
were carried from Christchurch.

1933, 31 March

FIRST NEW ZEALAND ACCEPTANCE FOR KUWAIT

On the imperial Airways
Karachi-London service the N.Z. Post Office applied a 4
line cachet to the 39 letters on the first acceptance
and these were backstamped KUWAIT 27 APR
33

By the Avro Ten, VH-UXX "Faith in
Australia" piloted by Charles T.P. Ulm with G.U. Allan
(co-pilot), R. Boulton (radio) and Mrs C. Ulm and Miss
K. Rogers as passengers. The "Faith in Australia left
Richmond Aerodrome, Sydney at 5.27pm and landed at the
Bell Block Aerodrome, New Plymouth at 9.47am the
following morning. An unofficial mail was carried
consisting of: Large covers printed for C.C. Wakefield
& Co. Ltd and addressed to their distributors.
These were posted when the plane visited Napier on 7
December, 1933 (25 flown).

Plain white covers stamped with the rubber stamp cachet
showing details of flight and postmarked New Plymouth
on 5 December.

Souvenir Post Cards printed in blue on white card and
stamped with Ulm's special cachets in black and
red.